The Montreal Impact Academy U16 team came out on top with a 2-1 road victory over the Revolution Empire, but the U18s fell 3-1 in USSDA action at McAvoy Park in Rochester, New York.
The older group scored the opening goal in the first game on Saturday when midfielder Jeremy Gagnon-Lapare scored in the 25th minute, but the Revolution mounted a comeback in the second half, scoring three times at home.
“Overall, it was a disappointing game,” said U18 head coach Jason DiTullio. “We played a game of two halves. The first we applied out principles and had the right effort and mentality. But then the second half, as it has become common, we didn’t match our opponent’s intensity. You get punished in a league like this if we don’t play 90 minutes and we need to learn from this. I’m expecting a good week of training and then back to work for us next weekend.”
The U16s, on the other hand, topped the Empire 2-1 in the second game. Mohamed El Alaoui (18') and Gabriel Wiethaeuper-Balbinotti (70') found the back of the net to secure win.
“I am proud of the group because we capitalized on our chances,” said Impact U16 head coach Simon Gatti. “The playing conditions were not ideal, with tough turf and a small field, but we put a solid effort together. We stuck to our principles and got a good result. We’ve been really stable defensively over the last few weeks which has helped us get on a good run.”
Next game
The Academy teams return to New York State to take on Everton FC Westchester at SUNY Purchase - Stadium Field (Turf) on Sunday, November 24, with the U18s playing at 10:45am and the U16s taking the field at 1:15pm.
